Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.18 Million Stake in Hershey Company (The) $HSY

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in shares of Hershey Company (The) (NYSE:HSY) by 4.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,081 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Hershey were worth $1,175,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fulton Bank N.A. raised its stake in Hershey by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 1,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont raised its stake in Hershey by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $460,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC raised its stake in Hershey by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. raised its stake in Hershey by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. now owns 7,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Hershey by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,179,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 57.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hershey Trading Down 0.2%

HSY opened at $192.19 on Monday. Hershey Company has a fifty-two week low of $140.13 and a fifty-two week high of $208.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.52, a PEG ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 0.26. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $186.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $174.16.

Hershey (NYSE:HSY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.23. Hershey had a net margin of 13.54% and a return on equity of 37.36%. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. Hershey has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.809-5.997 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hershey Company will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hershey Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $1.37 dividend. This represents a $5.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Hershey’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.78%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Rohit Grover sold 1,334 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total value of $240,120.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 38,068 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,852,240. This represents a 3.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michele Buck sold 19,290 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.00, for a total transaction of $3,742,260.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 193,624 shares in the company, valued at $37,563,056. The trade was a 9.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 65,704 shares of company stock valued at $12,206,910. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on HSY. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hershey in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Hershey from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Hershey from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $173.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Hershey from $154.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $175.89.

Hershey Company Profile

The Hershey Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of confectionery products and pantry items in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North America Confectionery, North America Salty Snacks, and International. It offers chocolate and non-chocolate confectionery products; gum and mint refreshment products, including mints, chewing gums, and bubble gums; protein bars; pantry items, such as baking ingredients, toppings, beverages, and sundae syrups; and snack items comprising spreads, bars, snack bites, mixes, popcorn, and pretzels.